Medical terminology is the language spoken by professionals in the medical community. As a histologist, you will need to understand medical terms in order to interpret information on specimen requisitions, review a surgical schedule and anticipate the specimens that will be submitted to the pathology laboratory, decipher a physician's handwriting, and communicate effectively with other professionals you come in contact with.

Medical terminology employs a logical, science-based vocabulary that accurately describes the human body and its components, conditions, and processes. The vocabulary is based on a systematic approach to building words. Many of the medical words are comprised of basic parts that are used in other non-medical words. Learning the meaning of these basic parts is essential to understanding the meaning of medical terms.